This is a blog by a Memphian who wants to share his unique perspective, along with some interesting facts & information, about cycling in & around the city of Memphis.

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Saturday, December 5, 2015

Southaven and other DeSoto County residents should begin to see bike lanes and trails in their future

Southaven
and other DeSoto County residents should begin to see bike lanes and trails in
their future
By:Michael Lander

The Memphis Metropolitan area has hundreds of miles of bike lanes
and trails and more are expected in the years ahead. Several
northern Mississippi cities in DeSoto County are in the
beginning stages of developing their own bike and
pedestrian facilities, themselves, eventually connecting to
existing and more established ones in other communities.

The Memphis
Metropolitan area has seen a lot of positive developments and growth over the
last decade, which to the excitement of cyclists, has also included hundreds of
miles of bike lanes and trails with even more planned in the years ahead.

Even though the growth of these have rapidly spread throughout most our area,
our neighbors to the south of us in cities like Southaven, Olive Branch,
and Horn Lake
in DeSoto
County have not quite yet benefited as much from this, but that may soon begin
to change.

While it may be slow in coming, some DeSoto County residents should begin to
see some of the bike lanes and trails that the Memphis Metropolitan area already
has, and will soon have even more of, in the next few years.

In the not-to-distant-future, there will be bike lanes and trails throughout many parts of the city of Memphis and into surrounding areas from downtown Memphis,
east to Germantown, Collierville, and Cordova, north to Tipton County, and even
over the Harahan Bridge to West Memphis, Ark.

For the time-being, DeSoto County residents may not have any bike lanes or
trails that run through or directly connect with the network of these in the
Memphis Metropolitan area, but they should not lose hope for this in the
future.

“There aren’t any active projects connecting Memphis to DeSoto County.The Metropolitan
Planning Organization (MPO) does have a number of corridors prioritized in
their long-term plan, but no short-term implementation planned,” Kyle Wagenschutz
said.

This is not to say that DeSoto County is not beginning to see the first steps
toward eventually having that or in establishing their own network of bike
lanes and trails themselves.

“I am aware of three current projects, under construction now or within the
next six months in DeSoto County involving bike lanes or greenways.That’s not to say that there aren’t more, but
I only track those that are receiving federal funds” Nick Oyler said.

A network of bike lanes in urban areas, like those in the Cooper-
Young neighborhood in Memphis, provide a means for cyclists
to more safely navigate on city streets and it offers a more
healthy and fun alternative for getting around town.

These three projects, according to Oyler, include the Delta View Bike Trail and
Park Overlook in Walls, the Nesbit Fire Station Trail and Connector, and the
Church Road Bike Lanes.

The Overlook in Walls is a “design and construction of a new shared-use trail
and bike lane along the existing Delta View Road/Nail Road/Old 61 right-of-way
from Johnson Creek on the south to the town of Walls in the north.The trail is included in the proposed DeSoto
County greenway network.The trail will
connect to the Johnson Creek Greenway,” Oyler said.

“The Nesbit Fire Station Trail and Connector is also a portion of the proposed
DeSoto County greenway network.This
project is the design and construction of a new shared-use trail along
McIngvale/Swinnea Rd connecting Southaven to Hernando.The project limits are from Green T Lake Rd
to Bankston Rd,” he said.

“Church Rd Bike Lanes will be standard bike lanes to be installed on Church
from Craft Rd in the west to Cockrum Rd/MS-305 in the east,” he added.

The Regional Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan recommends 788 projects, totaling
1,500 miles of bicycle and pedestrian facilities in the Southaven area alone.

In the Regional
Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan Jurisdiction Report, the MPO identified 33
bicycle corridor improvement priorities for Southaven.Twenty-three of these are for on-street
facilities (or bike lanes) and ten that have shared use path that are designed
to accommodate both cyclists and motorists alike.

“I would like to see Southaven become a more connected city with pedestrian and
bicycle routes.It adds a quality of
life for our citizens and promotes a healthier lifestyle for them,” he said.

“The Mississippi Department of
Transportation (MDOT) Multi-use trails connecting Snowden and Central Park
is in the process now and I hope to see construction begin in 2016.With that, I hope to begin to see a more
pedestrian-friendly community in general as we move forward,” he added.

Beyond that, Southaven residents should also expect to see other long-term
plans to unify their city with other bike and pedestrian facilities in
neighboring communities.

The Landers Center in Southaven is not only a place for shows and
entertainment, but it is also the starting and finishing line for
cycling events like the FedEx Rock-n-Roll MS-150 bike ride that
takes place every year in mid-September with proceeds
going to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

“We have officially adopted the Greenprint 2040 for the Metro-Memphis area to
connect any bike lanes or trails to Memphis and to adjacent
municipalities.We will also continue to
seek federal and state funds or grants through the MPO as well,” Musselwhite
said.

Long-time Southaven resident, John Tucker, spoke before the city’s Board of
Alderman on Tuesday, September 18, 2012.Tucker was originally from California, but has lived in Southaven since
1975.

At the Board of Alderman meeting he addressed concerns that he had about motorists
driving too fast through Central Park and his desire to see bike lanes within
the city park, itself, and beyond.

“The city touts itself as being a retirement community.It’s on the signs so it needs to be more
people-friendly for the walker, runner, and the cyclist,” Tucker said.

“I have been riding a bike, off-and-on for 66 years.I mainly just do it for fun and for the pure
joy of it.I just love the feel of the
wind on my face and I usually ride 10 miles a day.If there’s a health benefit from doing it,
that’s great, too,” he said.

“Being a bike rider, I would like to see dedicated bike paths and trails that
connect to ones in Memphis and I hope for the day when Southaven will have what
Memphis has now.I’m afraid that I won’t
live to see this and the greenspaces, but I still remain hopeful that I will,”
he added.

Perhaps, with the support of DeSoto County residents, and the active
involvement of elected officials and business leaders, a day will come, sooner
than later, when Tucker, and others like him, will have bike lanes and trails,
some of which will connect to others in the greater Memphis Metropolitan area.

One need only ask if there is any reason that our neighbors in our nearby
northern Mississippi communities should not have the bicycle lanes and trails
like what we already in the other Memphis area communities and the answer is
simple……they should.

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About Me

I am a long-time resident of Memphis, Tennessee. I had a long active duty military career and I am now a student at the University of Memphis. I am married to a native Memphian who is a retired Memphis City School teacher. When I am not busy, or in school, you will likely find me out riding my bike or jogging around my East Memphis neighborhood. If you would like to learn more of my passion for cycling, you can follow me on twitter at - https://twitter.com/memphiscyclist, or you can check out my cycling website - http://memphiscyclist.com. If you have any questions or comments about my blogs, my website or about Memphis cycling, please feel free to contact me at mikel5061@yahoo.com.